Episodes

How do we effectively promote Japan’s indigenous beverages? That is the million-dollar question and something the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association are working on relentlessly every day. On the Shochu front, one way they are doing this is by collaborating with bartenders and mixologists from all around the world who have fallen in love with Shochu and Awamori and showcasing the fruits of these collaborations at special events. Recently, we were lucky to join one of these events, where we...

Martin Sturma’s path to kurabito life at Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten has been a winding one. He first started working with sake at the JETRO Prague office, but he had already fallen in love with drink thanks to a fateful encounter on a study abroad trip to the U.S., of all places. By 2020 he was ready to make the move to Japan and start working at a brewery, but the pandemic got in the way, and he found himself in Paris working for one of the more interesting sake makers outside of Japan, WAKAZE. ...

Somehow, they’ve done it. Despite the long list of complex and seemingly impenetrable barriers, the folks at Tippsy have managed to make a large, diverse, and inspiring range of sake available to anyone just about anywhere in the U.S. Since founding Tippsy in 2018, Genki Ito has managed to expand Tippsy’s offerings to over 400 unique products and make them available to nearly every state across the country. What exactly is, “Tippsy”, you ask? In addition to being a reliable place to shop for s...

Aruten, arukoru tenka, or the ingredient largely responsible for the need to create a category of junmai sake in the first place, is sake that has been made with an addition of brewer’s alcohol. Four years and 4 months ago John, little Chris, big Chris, and Justin discussed the differences between junmai and aruten sake in episode 11 of Sake on Air. How time flies. But today Justin is diving back into aruten with sake specialist, and fellow podcaster, Jim Rion. Jim is the author of Discovering Y...

“Moyashi” is a bit tricky: it’s simply translated as “bean sprout” in Japanese, but in the world of sake it refers to the sprouting koji starter knows as tane-koji, in Japanese. In this week’s episode we get insight as to how this important terminology also ties into an even more specialized term “soyashi” and how the fermentation process is connected to the sprouting of various bacteria and molds. Moyashi was the Sake Concierge, Takashi “Umio” Eguchi’s second word choice in our On Your Own Ter...

The amount of “genshu” sake circulating the market these days is ever-increasing. So first and foremost, what in the world is genshu? This week your regular host Sebastien Lemoine brings the genshu topic to the table on his own terms together with Justin Potts. Beyond defining the term (hint: it’s actually pretty simple!) they also get into how the term can be both misinterpreted and reinterpreted at the discretion of the maker’s processes, making sake titled with the word genshu not only more ...

This week we’re lucky to be joined once again by Niigata Sake Lovers founder, sake educator, guide, and evangelist extraordinaire, Tomomi Duquette. Tomomi’s sake vocabulary that she’s brought to the bar this week on her own terms is particularly interesting in that it flies directly in the face of what her sake homefield is best known for. In Niigata – generally considered the karakuchi motherland – genuinely amakuchi sake is relatively few and far between (although that’s gradually changing, a...

Not only can a single batch of sake be broken down into unique seasonal releases, it can even be divided up into a range of unique products immediately following the pressing of a single batch. One possible way to do so would be to set aside (and then promptly bottle and distribute) what’s known as “arabashiri”, often translated as “first run”. This week we’re thrilled to be joined once again by previous guest of Masumi fame, Keith Norum. What exactly is “arabashiri”, and is it something you sh...

Is it “kura”, or is it “gura?” It’s both! On week’s episode of On Your Own Terms, regular host Justin Potts sits down with Chris Hughes to examine a rather pervasive term in and around the world of sake: kura, the Japanese word that encompasses storehouse, brewery, factory, and nowadays, a whole lot more. Sake breweries are often called sakagura in Japanese, with their modern facilities are often built around an older kura that can be 100s of years old. (Note: the “gura” spelling represents the...

Is it “unfiltered”? This week’s episode of On Your Own Terms explores one component of sake’s rather confusing classification of filtered vs. unfiltered when we discuss muroka sake with one exceptional gentleman who happens to be both the owner and head brewer of North American Sake Brewery and co-founder of the Sake Brewers Association of North America, Andrew Centofante. Often simply communicated as, “unfiltered”, muroka is just one of many processes and choices available to a brewery when d...

We’re back again with more, On Your Own Terms, the series that allows our guests to select a single bit of sake or shochu-specific terminology to share with us, explaining it concisely, while also reflecting on their unique experiences and perspectives tied to their topic-of-choice. This week, the Sake Concierge, Takashi “Umio” Eguchi, brings both terminology and perspective that only he could deliver. This time around we explore the “ricey” component of the sensory experience of sake. When we...

In case you missed it, we’ve just kicked off our new mini-series: On Your Own Terms, where we examine sake or shochu-specific terminology concisely through the eyes of the advocates and professionals that have unique experiences and perspectives on their topic-of-choice. Last episode we looked at the ever-popular topic of nama together with Jorge Navarette at Matsui Shuzo in Kyoto. (Nama has been a recent hot topic here on the show, actually). For those that missed out, it’s right below this epi...

This week we kick off a brand-new mini-series looking at sake (or shochu)-specific terminology in a new way. Up until now we’ve occasionally hosted in-depth discussions on hyper-specific topics unique to sake or shochu making, service, or experiences (see: Koji Basics, Kanzake, etc.), where we would round up our hosts or a team of specialists in attempt to unravel exciting and essential topics related to our favorite drink categories. Based on what our listeners have told us (and what the numb...

Books dedicated entirely to specific sake-producing regions have for all intents and purposes been non-existent in the English language; at least, until now. Enter, Discovering Yamaguchi Sake: A Taster’s Guide to Breweries, Culture, and Terrain, the recently released publication from Stone Bridge Press written by long-time Yamaguchi-resident, sake specialist, and fellow podcaster, Jim Rion. Sake long being in need of a tome dedicated to exploring the regional characteristics of a unique sake b...

If you’ve been listening to this show even intermittently over the past several years, you’re probably already aware that starting a sake brewery from scratch in Japan is, and has been for decades, a gargantuan task. However, in recent years, the number of young entrepreneurs navigating regulatory loopholes in order craft sake themselves in a manner that fulfills a dream and mission of cultivating a more inspiring and sustainable culture (and business model) for the next generation are beginning...

We’re somewhat at a loss for words. When we first began Sake On Air back in October of 2018 it was by no means a given that we would wind up putting 100 episodes about sake and shochu out into the world. Ambition, intertwined with ongoing effort to make a sake-centric podcast a reality was actually years in the making prior to this thing ever getting started. There was a feeling that something of this nature ought to exist, but with no real sake-specific precedent for reference, we had no idea...

Last week we brought you the first session from Sake Future Summit 2022 in a nice, easy-to-digest podcast package. (Videos from across the two weekends are, of course, still available for your viewing pleasure). This week we’re continuing that trend and bringing you another very special session that specifically examined the current and possible future state of the U.S. sake market, titled appropriately, Bringing Sake to the American Mainstream. This particular roundtable was hosted by Weston K...

Back in January across two weekends, the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association hosted the second iteration of the Sake Future Summit. (The first was held back in 2020). For those that missed it, now is as good of a time as ever to catch up! There were a handful of sessions conducted in Japanese (with English subtitles) that will require you to set aside a bit of time to read along. These include programs on, “Cutting Edge Sake & Food Pairing” with Marie Chiba (EUREKA!) and Hitoshi Utsunomiya...

In last week’s episode I interviewed Elliot Faber of Sake Central in Hong Kong If you missed that conversation, I encourage you to hit pause, go back, and check that out. We had a very lengthy conversation, some of which wound up on the cutting room floor. There was one topic, however, that after cutting it from the initial interview, after going back, I started thinking that maybe we ought to put out into the world. Being a newly minted father himself, our conversation naturally shifted to t...

Summarizing the work of Elliot Faber is a challenge. Often simply introduced as “Sake Samurai”, a title bestowed in 2016, which added him to the ranks of the select and deserving few to carry the title, ever since he catapulted onto the global sake scene as beverage director spearheading an inspiring sake program at Hong Kong’s now renowned Yardbird in 2011, Elliot has gone on to position and re-position himself in every crack and crevice of the sake industry where he found room for meaningful c...

Sparkling sake is on the rise. A style that was often served and enjoyed as an exciting and curious anomaly only a few years ago has become a staple in the lineup of sake breweries all across Japan. While more and more breweries enter new products into the increasingly crowded market every year, a handful of breweries have committed a massive amount of energy and resources to doubling down on their commitment to quality and their position as leaders in this ever-more popular style. The logistic...

It is not so uncommon these days to come across non-Japanese sake brewers, indeed we have featured many on this show, but in the case of this week’s guest, sake is quite literally in his family’s DNA. Having been raised in the US, George Briant Inoue Parsons is now preparing to take over from his uncle to run Inoue Shuzo, makers of Hakoneyama brand sake, a 100 year old sake brewery in Kanagawa. It’s a role George never expected would fall to him, and he needed some persuasion to take up the fami...

For Paul Willenberg – aka “Namazake Paul”– namazake is a unique exploration into the seasonality of sake. Based in Portland, Oregon, Paul has been lovingly cultivating what’s become arguably the most prolific source for unpasteurized sake (namazake) in the U.S. Due to namazake being primarily available only as seasonal, limited releases, along with the logistical challenges (and costs) associated with bringing this special sub-category of sake to a market that’s still very much in its early sta...

“My life in Kyoto is my life in sake.” Those few words from this week’s guest, Sake Concierge Takashi “Umio” Eguchi, rather appropriately and succinctly sum up why it is we were so excited to have him join us to explore such an iconic sake region. Author of the excellent tasting notes for The Japanese Sake Bible, host of his insightful YouTube tasting series and the accompanying Sake Concierge website, as well as hosting a wide range of tasting events and tours throughout Kyoto and the surroun...